President of Russia
Born: October 7, 1952
It is 100 days since the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Attacks on Ukraine came from the east, south through Crimea and north through Belarus. Putin apparently thought it would all be over in a few days. That’s not how it went. Huge Russian losses. Somewhere between 20,000 and 35,000 Russian soldiers were killed, several…
Ever since Russia’s invasion and brutal warfare in Ukraine, there has been speculation about what Putin wants after a military victory. In my opinion, it is Putin’s desire for what is often referred to as Novorossiya and Malorussija (New Russia and Little Russia). Maps that the Russian-backed rebels in the Donbas have, in practice…
Many say we must distinguish between Putin’s war in Ukraine and ordinary Russians. It is claimed that the ordinary Russian has no responsibility. Of course, we should not cover everyone under the same comb, but in general I believe that the Russians themselves have a responsibility for what happens. I have to justify this….
The ongoing attack on Ukraine is not Putin’s first war since he became prime minister in 1999. In the period since 1999, Putin has been President or Prime Minister continuously. The label dictator is just as easy to label him with. The overview of Russia’s wars is gloomy reading. I take them in order:…
While we are waiting for a full-scale Russian invasion of all or large parts of Ukraine, it is time to look at the cause of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia. In this blog I will look back at historical events, the Maidan uprising in 2013-14, Russia’s annexation of Crimea and the Russian –…
Then what most people expected happened. Alexei Navalny was arrested by the police shortly after the plane landed at Moscow airport this evening. Allegedly, he was arrested for violating the reporting requirement that was part of the release condition from a previous sentence. Navalny returned to Russia after his stay in Germany following an…